Inquirer Tab for SSS execs

Huawei MediaPad

The digital edition of the Philippine Daily Inquirer and other publications in the Inquirer group can now be accessed through a dedicated mobile device with an initial batch of 20 “Inquirer Tabs” delivered Thursday to employees of the Social Security System (SSS).

Blair O. Marquez, business development head of the Inquirer group, said the delivery kicks off the Inquirer Tab’s breaking into the market using the Huawei MediaPad as a platform.

The Inquirer Tab will be available starting Oct. 1 to a wider market, particularly those with credit cards issued by the Bank of the Philippine Islands.

According to Marquez, the Inquirer Tab is part of the Inquirer’s efforts to reach out to a younger market, noting that market research had shown that the average reader of the print edition is in his or her 40s.

“A two-year subscription to the Inquirer digital edition comes with the free tablet,” he said.

Users can access the daily paper as well as the full range of titles of Inquirer publications, bundled together in the “Inquirer Digital Newsstand.”

But more than that, subscribers can also use the Inquirer Tab as a mobile phone.

“They can make calls, access social networking sites, use a wide array of Android apps and even work on their personal documents,” Marquez said.

Hermie de Guzman, information and communication technology specialist at the SSS, said the pension fund is looking for ways to go digital with their newspaper subscriptions.

The pension fund provides at least 56 SSS officials with several newspaper subscriptions.

“One of the options that we are considering is to switch to Inquirer Digital, which is accessible through desktop computers and mobile phones,” De Guzman said.

When they learned that Inquirer Digital was coming out with a tablet, it was an even more attractive option, he said.

He clarified, however, that no decision has been made yet to provide select SSS officials with Inquirer Digital Newsstand subscriptions.

The 20 Inquirer Tabs delivered Thursday are to be paid for by the employees themselves.